Galaxy Note 2 N7100 is among the lucky few Android devices to get a spate of Jelly Bean custom ROMs and a handful of official Jelly Bean firmware in recent times. Just a few days ago, the premium smartphone received a couple of latest Android 4.2.2 (Jelly Bean) custom firmware via PACman ROM and Vanilla RootBox ROM.

Now, the popular handset has received the latest official Jelly Bean update via Android 4.1.2 XXDMB5 firmware for Middle East region. The official firmware supports Arabic language and is available for download through Samsung KIES as well as Over-The-Air (OTA) update. Though the firmware is officially meant for Middle East, Note 2 N7100 users who are residing in the UK and other select European countries can also download and install the same manually using this guide.

XXDMB5 official firmware and the instructions given in this guide are applicable for the Samsung Galaxy Note 2 N7100 model only and will not work with any other device. Verify the device's model number by navigating to Settings > About Phone.

Backup the important data and settings on the phone. It is recommended that the user backup data using one of the popular custom recovery tools such as ClockworkMod (CWM) or TWRP and avoid using Samsung KIES or ROM manager, as they lack flexible backup options.

Ensure that the device has at least 85 per cent battery charge before proceeding with the firmware installation.

Make sure that USB Debugging mode is enabledon the phone by navigating to Settings > Developer Options (if the device is running Android 4.0 or later) or go to Settings > Applications > Development (if the phone is running Android 2.3 or earlier). Otherwise if the device is running Android 4.2 onboard, then do the following steps:

Go to Settings > About Phone

Scroll down to the bottom of the screen and select Build Number

Tap the Build Number seven times to unlock or reveal the hidden Developer Options under Settings. Then select the checkbox to enable USB Debugging mode under Settings > Developer Options.

Verify that the device is factory unlocked and rooted with CWM recovery installed on it.

The instructions provided in this guide are meant for reference purpose only and do not support any warranty claims involving device damage or issues arising out of installing the official firmware. Users must proceed at their own risk.

Step 3 - Power off the phone and boot it into Download Mode. To do so, press and hold Volume Down and Home buttons together, and then tap the Power button until the Samsung logo or the red and yellow text appears on the screen.

Step 4 - Launch ODIN on computer and connect the phone to it while the phone is still in Download Mode.

Step 5 - When the phone connects successfully, one of the ID: COM boxes indicates yellow with the corresponding COM port number. This step may be time-consuming. So, do not interrupt the process.

Step 6 - Now, choose the files that need to be flashed or installed on the phone, which can be found among the extracted files in Step 1.

Click the 'PDA' button and choose the file named '.tar' or '.md5'.

Tap the 'Phone' button and choose the file named 'MODEM'. Ignore this step if there is no such file.

Hit the 'CSC' button and choose the file named 'CSC'. Ignore this step if such file is missing.

Click the 'PIT' button and choose the .pit file. Ignore this step if such file is absent

Step 7 - In ODIN, enable Auto Reboot and F. Reset Time options. But, the Re-Partition option must be checked ONLY if you chose a .PIT file in the previous step.

Step 8 - Now hit Start button in ODIN and the firmware installation process will begin. It will take just a few minutes to complete.

Step 9 - Once the firmware installation is complete, the phone will reboot automatically. When the home screen appears, disconnect the phone from computer.

The Samsung Galaxy Note 2 is now successfully updated to Android 4.1.2 XXDMB5 Jelly Bean official firmware. Go to Settings > About phone to verify the firmware version installed.